New Set Photos for The Hobbit & Scene Descriptions Involving Bilbo and Gandalf Quint for AICN has just posted his fourth set report for Peter Jackson's The Hobbit, and it features the first appearance of the Elvish knife, Sting.

New Production Video For THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY Via his official Facebook page, director Peter Jackson has revealed the fifth production video for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, featuring some new behind-the-scenes footage. Check it out...

JACKSON: "The Hobbit is very much a children's book and The Lord of the Rings is something else; it's not really aimed at children at all. I realized the characters of the dwarves are the difference. Their energy and disdain of anything politically correct brings a new kind of spirit to it. And that's why I thought, OK, this could be fun!"

If you though Joss Whedon had it tough spreading screentime amongst his ensemble cast, Peter Jackson has it even tougher. Here, Jackson briefly comments on that challenge:

JACKSON: "That was something I worried about. I imagined 13 guys with long hair and beards and I thought, 'How are we ever going to know which dwarf is which? It's an ensemble from hell really. I thought nine members of the Fellowship was a problem; but here, with Bilbo and Gandalf, we've got 15. It's working out fine though. The dwarves give it a kind of childish, comedic quality that gives us a very different tone from The Lord of the Rings."

Jackson wants audiences to know that despite some differences, he's striving to keep the same feel from the LOTR trilogy:

JACKSON: "I want it to seem like we've gone back on location into Middle-earth; that these two movies feel like they belong at the beginning of the other three. We're the same filmmakers going into the same world."

Talking about original director Guillermo del Toro, Total Film reports that Jackson stated that the "films do retain some aspects del Toro's style and DNA, but that they have largely been overshadowed by Jackson's own attempts to replicate his approach to The Lord of the Rings ten years ago."

Jackson's wife and writing partner Fran Walsh reportedly stated that the second movie will be primarily focused with "war, madness and dragon rage." She explains:

FRAN WALSH: "We always saw The Hobbit more in the golden light of a fairytale. It's more playful. But by the time you get to the end, Tolkien is writing himself into that place where he can begin that epic journey of writing LOTR, which took, as he put it, his life's blood. All those heavier, darker themes which are so prevalent in the later trilogy start to come into play."

The Lord of the Rings star discusses his role as Saruman in the two upcoming movies from director Peter Jackson, commenting on the amount of filming, which characters don't return and more.

Collider has come across the following "Christmas Message" from the actor in which he discusses his role in The Hobbit movies and Tim Burton's Dark Shadows as well as much more. Below the video is a breakdown of what Lee talks about so you can skip ahead to the most interesting bits if you choose to.

• 2:20 Lee comments on The Wicker Tree • 2:55 Lee comments on Hugo and working with Scorsese • 6:30 Lee talks about both The Hobbit films • 7:55 Lee mentions that Aragorn and the Rohirrim will not be present in The Hobbit • 8:20 Lee talks about his 4 days of filming to fulfill his role in both films • 8:50 Lee comments on Saruman • 9:30 Lee talks about Dark Shadows

Peter Jackson Talks THE HOBBIT,"Filming For Both Movies Wraps In July" Filming for The Hobbit part 1 and 2 wraps in July, information from Tolkien's appendix used to bridge the gap between The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings

Peter Jackson's LOTR prequel got a bit lost in the mix last night what with of all of the great CBM news, so here is the panel in full, featuring a guest appearance from Elijah Wood and Andy Serkis doing the "Gollum voice"..

HOBBIT: THERE AND BACK AGAIN Dated For Summer 2014; Second Installment Gets New Title

Warner Bros. and MGM Pictures have announced that the third and final film in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit trilogy will be titled The Hobbit: There And Back Again reports Deadline. The threequel is set to be released worldwide on July 18th, 2014; the same day that X-Men: Days of Future Past is scheduled to hit the big screen. The second instalment in the franchise based on the J.R.R. Tolkien novel has been renamed The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug and is still set to be released on December 13th, 2013. The first film, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, will be released on December 14th, later this year.

Check out some new stills from first installment of Peter Jackson's new Middle Earth trilogy, which give us our first clear look at a character who looks set to have his profile raised considerably from J.R.R. Tolkien's novel, Bolg the Orc Chieftain..

UPDATE: 'Bard' & 'Legolas' Feature In First Official Still From THE HOBBIT: THERE AND BACK AGAIN

We're not exactly sure why an official still from the third film has made its way online before something from the second, but we'll take it! This snap definitely confirms a much bigger role for Bard in this series of movies, and it's also very interesting that he shares scenes with Legolas - who obviously journeys on from Mirkwood and will not be making a mere cameo as was expected. Thanks to Jonas for the heads up.

With The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey hitting theaters next week, promotion is already beginning for the other two installments from Peter Jackson's anticipated Middle-earth trilogy. Recently, we saw the first still from the third movie, There And Back Again, which is set to be released in 2014. Now, as previously promised, Entertainment Weekly have debuted the first still from the second part of the series, The Desolation Of Smaug. The site speculate that Martin Freeman's Bilbo Baggins is being frightened by the villainous Smaug (Benedict Cumberbatch). "The dragon is a huge, wonderful, amazing part of the story, but it doesn’t end there," says screenwriter and producer Philippa Boyens regarding the plot of There And Back Again. "Everyone can suspect there’s a rather large battle in film three." Of course, he's referring to the epic Battle of Five Armies.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is set to hit theaters December 14th; The Desolation Of Smaug will arrive December 13th, 2013; There And Back Again is scheduled to be released July 18th, 2014.

THE HOBBIT Cast On Their Favorite Moments From THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG

In the following series of video interview snippets, Peter Jackson, Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, James Nesbitt, Aidan Turner, Andy Serkis, Cate Blanchett and visual effects supervisor Joe Letteri discuss what fans can look forward to in The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug. They don't give too much away, but anyone who hasn't read the novel and doesn't want to know a thing about the second movie in Peter Jackson's new trilogy should be wary of some mild SPOILERS..

Richard Armitage Teases "The Battle Of Five Armies" In THE HOBBIT: THERE AND BACK AGAIN

The news that The Hobbit was being split into three movies was met with a mixed reaction from fans, but perhaps the best part about the announcement was the fact it meant we will get to see "The Battle of Five Armies" brought to the big screen. It hasn't even been shot yet, but talking to Empire Magazine recently, Richard Armitage had this to say about the battle sequence. "It's been put aside until next year, thankfully," he joked. "It's this big thing looming over us. I'm predicting about ten weeks for the shoot because it's an extensive battle and each character is going to have their 'hero' moment on the battlefield. It's a manic fight in the air - the eagles are fighting bats - and on the ground, and I can't wait to see what Pete does with that." That's right, the battle will see men, elves, dwarves, orcs and eagles all facing off for the future of Middle-Earth! It falls to second unit director Andy Serkis to handle the action, but he isn't letting the pressure get to him. "It's going to be intense beyond belief. It's going to be extraordinary - that's all I can say." The Hobbit: There And Back Again is set to be released on July 18th, 2014.

It seems James McAvoy is a Tolkien fan. In an interview with Total Film for their latest issue, the Scottish actor - who will reprise the role of Charles Xavier in X-Men: Days Of Future Past - says that he'd like to step into Middle Earth as that most famous of Wizards, Gandalf The Grey, when the mag asked which role he'd most like to tackle when he's finished his current slate. “I’d like to play Gandalf,” said McAvoy, laughing. “It’s called The Silmarillion! It’s a collection of poems and songs that chart the ancient history of Middle-earth. My true geek is coming to the fore, but they’re really, really beautiful stories. In part of that is the genesis of Gandalf, or Mithrandir, or Stormcrow, or any of his many, many names. Anyway, maybe that’s the one!” Of course there are presently no plans to bring the novel to the screen, but if the rest of The Hobbit movies are as successful as the first, who knows.

Martin Freeman Comments Briefly On THE HOBBIT Sequels And The Return Of SHERLOCK

Ever since it was confirmed that Peter Jackson's The Hobbit had been extended to a trilogy, we've known that it would mean the cast would have to return for more filming. Well, talking at the BAFTA's, Martin Freeman commented on how he feels about stepping back into the shoes hairy feet of Bilbo Baggins. "It's a film we've not yet finished. People sort of say, 'How was The Hobbit?' and I'm like, 'I'm still doing it!' I've got to go back in late May for another couple of months. It's going to be part of all our lives for a long time." For those of you worried that Freeman and Benedict Cumberbatch's big screen success would mean that the superb BBC series Sherlock would be coming to an end, think again. "We start that next month," he confirmed. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is set to be released on December 13th, 2013. and The Hobbit: There And Back Again will follow shortly after on July 18th, 2014.